Can someone tell me about straight tone versus vibrato? I’m wondering how good vocalists can control the amount of time they spend on a straight tone before their voice switches to vibrato?
I just watched this clip, starting at 1:20. (It’s about two minutes).
This leads me to believe that vocalists always consciously control when they switch. Is this true?
Also, why do we tend to equate vibrato with higher quality singing? Isn’t a vibrato just alternating between half steps? Or microtones? So my wild-ass speculation is that we as listeners enjoy vibrato because of the constant and rapid resolution of microtones below to the pure intended note…am I on the right track?
Regarding this clip, I was amazed that he could control this aspect of his voice so easily. I wonder if everyone is naturally capable of this control, or is it learned with years of training?
I think vibrato is (sometimes) desirable because it adds richness to the sound. It is like a chorus effect but you are doing it organically with one voice. I don’t think it is because of multiple resolutions of the tone.
So much of it really just depends on the singer. I have a very strong natural vibrato, which is adored by directors and I loathe it. I want to sing like Janis, and I sound like Snow White - almost, but not quite, a tremolo instead of a vibrato.
Other people struggle to produce vibrato, and need a lot of training to figure out how to to it.
I remember reading in a Roy Orbison biography that he was concerned about growing older because it was becoming more difficult to keep vibrato out of his voice. Is this a problem?
I’ve been singing in a men’s chorus for almost 20 years . . . and it was only a couple of years ago that I finally produced a vibrato . . . while rehearsing a Patsy Cline medley in the shower. But it’s a very fast vibrato; unchecked it has a sort of Woody-Woodpeckerish quality. How can I slow it down?